VZCZCXRO8685
RR RUEHDA
DE RUEHDA #0140/01 1651159
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 141159Z JUN 06
FM AMCONSUL ADANA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4191
INFO RUEHDA/AMCONSUL ADANA 0791
RUEUITH/AFOSI DET 521 ANKARA TU
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 0740
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 0641
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000140 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM TU
SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR JUNE 14, 2006 
 
 
This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for June 14, 2006. 
 Please note that Turkish press reports often contain errors or 
exaggerations; AmConsulate Adana does not vouch for the accuracy 
of the reports summarized here. 
 
POLITICAL, SECURITY, HUMAN RIGHTS 
 
HURRIYET / ZAMAN / EVRENSEL / SABAH (GUNEY) / BOLGE:    A 
19-year-old person, who allegedly planned to place a bomb at the 
municipality building in Mersin's Tarsus district yesterday at 
noon, returned back to the street after he was reportedly 
discouraged by the metal detector at the gate of the building. 
The man put the bomb in front of a bookstore 80 meters away from 
the municipality.  People noticing the suspicious person caught 
him and called the police who safely detonated the bomb and 
arrested the man.  Evrensel daily claimed that the person, who 
was already being followed by the police, was caught red-handed. 
 
 
ZAMAN / RADIKAL / EVRENSEL / OZGUR GUNDEM:      Semdinli case 
defendants placed a demand for the court to issue 
non-jurisdiction over the case, to refer it to a military court 
(since defendants were military personnel), and to expand the 
scope of the investigation at yesterday's hearing.  Van Third 
Heavy Penalty Court overturned such demands.  Whereas the 
defendants' attorneys claimed that there were attempts to reach 
a verdict "in haste" for the case, the litigants claimed 
defendants were trying to prolong the suit.  Nearly 10 
intelligence officers were again present at the courtroom, but 
no foreign observers attended yesterday's hearing.  Litigants' 
attorneys reiterated claims that Semdinli bombing was a product 
of an "organized act", and "its verdict will set an example to 
circles resorting to illegal methods in resolving the Kurdish 
issue." The court hearing has been adjourned to June 19. 
 
ZAMAN / EVRENSEL / OZGUR GUNDEM:        Dogubeyazit provincial 
chairperson of DTP (Democratic Society Party) in Agri has 
recently been sentenced to one year in prison and a 500 YTL fine 
(approx. 300 USD) on charges that 50,000 forms, including the 
statement "I regard Ocalan as representing my political will", 
were found in the chairperson's office. 
 
EVRENSEL:       Hatay deputy from ANAP (Motherland Party) submitted 
a question to the Turkish Parliament on how much real estate 
property has been sold to which foreigners at what price since 
2003 in Hatay. 
 
EVRENSEL / OZGUR GUNDEM:        Two families in Pinar village of 
Tunceli reportedly had to leave their houses and move to another 
village because of the intense security measures taken at the 
area following PKK's attack on a military convoy in Tunceli's 
Geyiksuyu village (see press summary 06/12). 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM:   Diyarbakir's Gun TV commented on recent news 
presented on media portraying RTUK (Higher Board of Radio and 
Television) as removing time restrictions for cultural program 
broadcasts in different languages and dialects.  Gun TV 
broadcasting director said that such regulations had already 
been existent on the current regulations, and media was 
presenting what is already existent as a new development.  The 
director further said that if 45-minute time restriction on TV 
programs and the requirement about Turkish subtitles were 
abolished, then it would be a new story to tell. 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM:   DIHA (Dicle News Agency) made a written 
announcement and objected to arrest of one of its journalists 
based on a written announcement given by a PKK defector in 
Tunceli (see press summary 06/13).  DIHA announced it an 
unacceptable implementation that the journalist had been kept at 
the Jandarma command and his house had been searched for hours. 
Meanwhile, an employee of the Ozgur Gundem daily, who was 
detained by Jandarma officials in Elazig's Maden district, was 
released.  She was reportedly detained for delivering a book 
authored by Abdullah Ocalan to people. 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM:   Amnesty International's (AI) Turkey 
Representative, which was reportedly established in 2002 in 
Turkey, held a meeting in Malatya to form an Initiative Group 
there. 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM:   The daily claims that there had been an 
increase in Turkish military's setting wooded areas on fire as 
temperatures increase in the region and the military operations 
get more frequent.  The last example the daily cited was the 
fire allegedly caused by Turkish military in the Cudi Mountain 
of Sirnak. 
 
BOLGE / EKSPRES / ZAMAN:        The fire which broke out in 
Adana's Imamoglu district destroyed 123 acres of forest land, 
 
ADANA 00000140  002 OF 002 
 
 
said General Director of Forests.  Authorities are searching the 
causes of the fire.  Separately, a fire broke out in Adana's 
Kozan district and damaged 98 acres of forest land. 
 
CUMHURIYET / BOLGE / EKSPRES:   The committee organizing the 
Spring Festival (May 8-13) at Cukurova University in Adana 
denied allegations circulating on some media that a stand was 
set up during the festival where posters of Abdullah Ocalan were 
hung. 
REID